Category Archives: American

American, Restaurant Reviews, West Village

The Clam Bar

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First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:

This joint used to be called ZZ’s Clam Bar. It’s a Major Food Group spot, like Carbone just a few doors down, The Grill, and The Lobster Club. It’s a fancy, small speakeasy spot that only serves raw bar type food. We basically tried almost everything (we skipped the caviar service and the scallop crudo).

The shellfish were really nice, served along with some really chef’d up sauces.

We tried both toasts. One was like a tuna tartate, and the other was trout roe with truffle honey. The trout roe was clearly the winner here, and it was easily one of the best bites of the night.

The first crudo we did was the hiramasa, which reminded me of kampachi or hamachi. Very mild fish flavor, really nicely treated. Fresh!

Our next crudo was the smoked salmon. This was incredible. Also one of the best bites of the night. The dijon and dill really hit on this, and it paired perfectly with the rye toast points that it came with.

The lobster salad was the only thing we didn’t love. It had too much mayo on it or something, but it was still perfectly cooked and nicely chilled. Also really beautiful.

Last, the beef carpaccio with uni, lobster and caviar.

This was definitely the star of the show for me. It was so delicious and decadent.

The portion size was generous too, which I guess is expected at $105.

As with other Major Food Group spots, the pricing is somewhat astronomical, but the quality is always top notch.

This place has great cocktails too, by the way. I was drinking Gibsons.

The Cake Dealer had a Paloma and a margarita. Easily the best Paloma we have ever had. Way better than the margarita.

THE CLAM BAR
169 Thompson St.
New York, NY 10012

American, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Non-Steakhouse Steaks, Other Cuts, Restaurant Reviews

Funny Bar

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First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:

Funny Bar just opened up nearby. The Cake Dealer and I recently wandered in here and had a few drinks, and we knew we wanted to come back.

It’s a live jazz bar with no cover charge, and a really sleek, streamlined menu of STEAK!

Literally, there are like four items on the menu: steak for one, steak for two, french fries, and a wedge salad. Oh and they surprised us each with a free small chocolate brownie sundae at the end of the meal, but it wasn’t on the menu.

We started with the wedge salad, which is simple but delicious.

The steak for one is a petite filet, or shoulder tender/teres major. I love this cut.

It has all the flavor of the chuck, from where it hails, and all the tenderness of a filet mignon. At $29 for about an 8oz steak that comes with fries, this is a great deal. 9/10.

The steak for two is a larger cut. The server told me it was a flatiron, and the host told me it was a strip steak. I don’t think either is correct.

At first I thought maybe it was a tri-tip based on the shape, but the muscle striations seem to go the wrong direction for that. Based on the muscle fibers, I think this is in the sirloin family. Perhaps top butt/sirloin, or top sirloin. Either way it was perfectly cooked, had a great crust, and was artfully topped with a maitre’d butter and herbs. At $69 this is also a great deal for people to try the best of what can be on an otherwise under-utilized cut. 8/10.

Although it might be better to get two of the steaks for one instead of one of the steaks for two, satisfaction will be guaranteed. The fries are perfectly cooked as well. This is the large plate that comes with the steak for two:

They even brought us a free dessert on the house afterwards – miniature brownie sundaes!

I will be back for sure.

FUNNY BAR
133 Essex St.
New York, NY 10002

American, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Cactus Wren

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First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

The Cake Dealer and I decided to give this new joint a shot. We really liked everything we tried, so let me get right into it.

First, the cocktails were excellent. We tried three, and they were all delicious.

The shellfish platter is a bit expensive as $38 for six pieces, but each and every item was a masterpiece. I think my favorites were the hot items on the pebbles (oyster cooked with beef fat and topped with horseradish, and the clam with garlic chips.

The shrimp toast was so delicious. Buttery, crispy, and with lump shrimp meat instead of the paste-like texture that you might see at Chinese spots. The tarter-like sauce was definitely not needed here.

The mortadella tartine was really tasty. I could eat about 30 of these.

We also did their caviar service which was a generous heap of high quality caviar, cream, whipped bean puree, onion, chives, avocado and potato chips with a large bowl of fresh tortillas. This was really nice. I would definitely get this again.

For our mains, we did the fries and fish, which is a medium sized bowl of french fries and fried anchovies.

The anchovies were fresh, plump, light and crisp – not very fishy at all, and really tasty white meat.

We also did the Peekytoe crab omelette on rice, which I really loved.

This, the shellfish and the shrimp toast were probably my favorite items of the night. One thing I wish the omelette had was a crunch texture somewhere. Maybe some crispy fried shallots on top would do the trick. But I did appreciate the texture pops from the salmon roe on top. So good!

Finally, we finished off with their cinnamon toast sundae. The ice cream tasted like the cereal Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and the crunch element came from the tiny fried bombolini doughnuts on top. Absolute crack!

We can’t wait to go back to try more of the menu. The service was really great here too, as they gave us complimentary glasses of Lambrusco since we were celebrating our anniversary.

CACTUS WREN
98 Rivington St.
New York, NY 10002

American, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Non-Steakhouse Steaks, Other Cuts, Restaurant Reviews

Beauty & Essex

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First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

The Cake Dealer and I finally made it over to Beauty & Essex after living down here since late 2020. She had been to the bar once before, but I had only ever been inside to make a meat delivery when I was working at Golden Packing in 2021. The chef, Derrick Prince, was on some cooking competition TV shows back in the day, and since then, I’ve always enjoyed following along on his social media and trying out his food whenever I could. He’s a really talented chef.

First off, the service here is impeccable. This is the same for all Tao Group properties. Really great staff that genuinely cares. They started us off with complimentary glasses of bubbly. It was a nice glass too, not some cheap garbage. I ordered a martini as well, and it was made very nicely.

We ordered two apps, but Derrick sent out three more! We had the pleasure of trying the French dips on toast. the shishito peppers, the sea bass tacos, the grilled cheese and tomato soup dumplings, and the steak tartare quesadillas. I think my favorites were the French dips and the sea bass tacos, but The Cake Dealer preferred the dumplings. All of them were great though.

For our mains, we ordered the Peruvian chicken and the beef Wellington.

Both of these were delicious, but I think the winner for both of us was the chicken. Shocker! But there was just something about the jalapeno salsa verde, the squash, carrot and zucchini ribbons underneath, and those little shreds of crispy potato and peas on top that just came together in a magical way. Incredible.

And that’s not to trash the Wellington at all. It was cooked to an absolutely perfect, butter-knife tender medium rare. The sauce was velvety smooth, the pastry was crispy and light. A really great representation of that this dish is meant to be. This is a 9/10, especially since the price was shockingly low to me at like $65. The beef alone would cost more than that at a steakhouse, not including all the prep and labor to make it into a Wellington. Great value.

On the side, we ordered the caulilini, which consisted of broccolini and cauliflowerini (a cross between cauliflower and broccolini), served in a parmesan broth. This was really nice, but Derrick sent out these roasted Kyoto carrots that blew us away. They were roasted for hours and served with some sort of blood orange agrodolce sauce. Good enough to make you understand vegetarians.

For dessert, we tried these beauties that were shaped like cherries, which had either a vanilla or white chocolate mousse inside of a chocolate shell that was covered in a cherry glaze and plopped on top of a hazelnut and chocolate crumble. Perfect way to end the meal.

I highly recommend this place, and I will definitely be going back to try more of the menu. They even offer a brunch pre fixe, which comes with an app, an entree, a side, and a glass of sparkling rose for $35. Another steal of a deal in my opinion.

BEAUTY & ESSEX
146 Essex St.
New York, NY 10002

American, French, Restaurant Reviews, Upper East Side

Cafe Commerce

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First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

Chef Harold Moore recently re-opened Cafe Commerce on the upper east side. I came up with my friends Jay and Jeremy, who you know better as “The Dishelin Guide” and “NYC Food FOMO” on Instagram. We tried a bunch of shit.

First, I started out with an ODB (dirty gin martini with blue cheese olives and olive brine) at the bar. This was delicious, so I had another with dinner.

To start, we went in on some beef carpaccio, which is served with horseradish, mayo and capers on top of a flat tater tot. Incredible!

These scallops with mushrooms and escargot butter were a smash hit, too.

As a middle course, we did the rabbit papparedelle with bacon and olives. This was really nice, but it could have used a pinch of finishing salt on top.

For the mains, we went big. First, Harold’s famous roast chicken. This is huge, and comes with a side of whipped potatoes and foie gras stuffing.

You can see the potatoes in the video, along with the other side of nduja Brussels sprouts that we ordered.

Next, we had the Thursday night rack of lamb special. This was the winning dish, hands down.

It came with a decadent fig and pistachio mustard glaze that paired nicely with that perfectly cooked lamb.

Last up, Harold’s famous coconut cake. A massive slice!

Everything here is great. I can’t wait to go back to try more stuff.

CAFE COMMERCE
964 Lexington Ave.
New York, NY 10021

American, Diner, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Betty

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First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:

This spot is pretty good. I might go back for the fried chicken bites and perhaps to try the burger, which looked good when it came out to another person’s table.

BETTY
193 Henry St.
New York, NY 10002

American, Chinese, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews

Pecking House Chicken

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First, check out my Ride & Review HERE:

This spot recently opened down by Two Bridges, and I’ve been psyched to try it out.

We got five items; three mains and two sides.

1. The Blackened Chicken Sandwich

This was probably my favorite of all the items. It has a distinctly earthy Mexican flavor to it from the Oaxaca cheese and pickled jalapeños. Absolute banger.

2. Chili Quarter Chicken

I expected this to be wetter, spicier and saltier based on what I’ve seen on Instagram to date, but it was still goo. A bit expensive at $9 without a side, but I’d definitely get it again (perhaps the extra hot version though).

3. Salted Egg Wings

These were delicious. No dipping sauce needed! The batter from the salted yolk comes in nice and crisp, and with the wings being slightly smaller than your typical bar room Buffalo wings, you get a perfect ratio or meat to crisp with every bite.

4. Chicken Salt Fries

These could have used a bit more crisp on them, but they were tasty. Also – not too salty! Nicely seasoned, as a matter of fact.

5. Charred Cukes w/Ginger

These were unique! Charring the cucumber softens them a bit and adds a different flavor profile to them that I’ve never experienced before. The ginger sauce isn’t too pungent, so you still get all that fresh cucumber flavor to cool off from the spicy food between bites.

PECKING HOUSE CHICKEN
83 Henry Street
Shop 1
New York, NY 10002

American, Latin/Mexican & Caribbean, Lower East Side/Chinatown, Restaurant Reviews, West Village

Red Lion & El Cabron Taqueria

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Red Lion is a Bleecker Street bar that’s been around forever. They started offering 50-cent wings on Wednesdays, so me and some buddies took our Zooz bikes out for a ride to check them out.

The wings were pretty good! The best flavor was hot – way better than mild, garlic parm or bbq.

The tacos joint was great. Nice budget friendly tacos at under $5 each, and on Tuesdays they are even cheaper for “Taco Tuesday.”

Here’s a video of the food:

At the end, you can see us grabbing some boilermakers at 169 Bar. $6 beer and a shot!

RED LION
151 Bleecker St.
New York, NY 10012

EL CABRON TAQUERIA
26 Essex St.
New York, NY 10002

American, Brooklyn, Restaurant Reviews

Randazzo’s Clam Bar

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Randazzo’s is a spot I’ve always heard about but never got a chance to try, until now.

My wife and I were out at Coney Island, and we figured this would be a great spot for lunch after getting sand blasted on the windy beach that day.

 

We started with the combo platter of fried seafood with their famous spicy red sauce on top. It was awesome.

Really, the seafood is just fine or okay, but it’s the sauce that you really find yourself going back for over and over. So we took some home with us.

We also did their fried oyster and lobster roll sandwiches. Both were “meh” at best. The lobster was a cold lobster salad and not a warm lobster roll.

That said, they are expert with frying shit. The fries and zucchini were great, as was the batter on the oysters and calamari.

I would probably go back again, but I’d stick with the spicy calamari.

RANDAZZO’S CLAM BAR
2017 Emmons Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11235

American, Burgers, East Village, Pub Food, Restaurant Reviews

The Lions

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First, check out my Ride & Review video HERE:

This place has been popping up all over Instagram, and once I saw the images of their burger and mortadella sandwich, I knew I had to get in ASAP to try.

We went right when they opened at 5pm on a Saturday, and the place was jammed by 5:30. Apparently everyone had the same idea!

We started with the fried mozzarella and Lions baked potato (with sour cream and an egg yolk).

The baked potato was a game changer. It was so freaking flavorful. We both loved it. As for the mozzarella…

Perfect temperature for stretching! And surprisingly light. Very flavorful.

The burger was 100% perfection. A nice thick aged patty, topped with two slices of American cheese, atop a slice of grilled onion, which helps to protect the beautiful sesame seed bottom bun. Four slices of pickle came on the plate as well. We obviously put them on top.

My pictures sucked, but the interior was a perfect medium rare / medium, which is ideal for this ind of “steakhouse” style burger. This was a killer. On par with Luger or Red Hook Tavern for just $18. For $4 you can get fries with it, and the fries were excellent. Nice and crispy, not too salty. The only down was that they charged us for the side order of fries ($8) rather than the “accompanying” fried ($4). I was wondering why this was such a huge order.

The mortadella sandwich was excellent too. While it ate a bit salty due to the Calabrian chili tapenade, the flavor was out of this world. The pistachio studded mortadella had a ton of porky character, and the blue cheese on this was more like a spread than a crumble or a saucy mess. It worked, though I questioned whether it would when I saw it on the menu.

As you can see, this came with chips. So we had three types of potato with this meal: chips, fries and a baked potato.

Side note: They also make a great martini.

This place is also going to be offering a steak night on Wednesdays for something like $35, and monthly “Beefsteak” meals which will be an all-inclusive price that covers drinks, starters, steak and dessert. I really can’t want to try those!

THE LIONS
132 1st Ave.
New York, NY 10009